Format vs Squarespace
We give Format a 2.4 GPA and Squarespace a 2.6, out of 4.0. Format grades higher on value for money. Squarespace grades higher on features and ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Format
Portfolio website builder for photographers and other creatives
Squarespace
Template-based website builder with an online store and invoicing
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAFormatFair | 2.6GPASquarespaceGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BBasic is $10 a month billed yearly ($14 monthly), right at this category's cheaper quarter. It's capped at 10 pages and 70 images with no store, so many will move to Pro at $17. Pro's $12 offer needs a code, ends October 31, 2026 and covers the first year only. | CBasic is $19 a month for one site on yearly billing ($25 monthly), and it's the plan a small business would buy, since the store comes with it. That's the ordinary middle of this category ($9 to $22). Core at $29 drops the 2% store fee. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, but a 14-day free trial with no card needed, which is enough time to load a portfolio and see how it looks. Students can ask for a free year. | CNo free plan. There's a 14-day trial with no card needed, which is long enough to build the thing and see if you like it, but after that every site needs a paid plan. |
| Features | CIt does the portfolio job fully: 90+ themes, Flex Block layouts, proofing galleries, file transfers, hosted video and a commission-free store. That's a smaller job than a general builder does, and Basic leaves out the store, video and image storage. | BTemplates, a drag-and-drop editor, a store on every plan, invoicing, memberships, forms, newsletters and SEO tools. That's the whole job of a small business site. Custom code and pop-ups wait for Core, but nothing core is missing. |
| Ease of use | CThere's an iPhone app but no store rating on record. Themes do the heavy lifting, but you're still building a site, page by page and gallery by gallery. | B4.6 from about 18,800 App Store ratings for its phone app. Templates do most of the design work, so you're mostly swapping in your own words and photos. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb and iPhone, with a Lightroom Classic plugin, Stripe, PayPal, Weglot, Google Workspace and Google Analytics. There's no Android app and no desktop app of its own. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Google Workspace, Mailchimp, Zapier, Stripe, PayPal and Printful, plus commerce APIs on Core and up. There's no desktop app, which keeps it off an A. |
| Best for | photographers' portfolios with client galleries | polished template sites with a shop built in |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Format and Squarespace. How we grade
Price against what you get
Format starts at $10 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Squarespace starts at $19 a month and scores 3.0.
Squarespace scores higher, and starts $9 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other website and landing page builders on the chart, 2 score higher than Format for less, and 2 score higher than Squarespace for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Format starts at $10 per month, billed annually ($14 billed monthly). Squarespace starts at $19 per site / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly).
- Only Squarespace lists an Android app.
- Format also covers no-code and file sharing.
- Squarespace also covers forms and invoicing.
At a glance
| Format | Squarespace | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $10 per month, billed annually ($14 billed monthly) | $19 per site / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial, no credit card required | 14-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Ideaform Inc. | Squarespace, Inc. |
| Price read from | format.com | squarespace.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Format
- Photographers who deliver proofs and files to clients from their own site
- Artists, designers and filmmakers who want a portfolio without coding
- Creatives selling prints, downloads or bookings without a platform commission
Squarespace
- Creatives and small businesses who want a polished site from a template
- Service businesses that also invoice clients and take payments
- Small shops that want the store and the website in one subscription
Worth knowing
Format
- The $12 and $15 a month shown for Pro and Pro Plus need a checkout code, end October 31, 2026 and cover the first year only.
- Basic has no store, hosted video, image storage or custom fonts, and stops at 10 pages and 70 images.
- A domain costs $30 a year after a free first year on annual Pro and Pro Plus; Google Workspace email is $100 a year extra.
- There is no free plan, and the mobile app is for iPhone only.
Squarespace
- There is no free plan; after the 14-day trial every site needs a paid plan.
- Basic takes a 2% fee on online store sales and allows only 2 contributors; Core removes both limits.
- Custom JavaScript, code injection, pop-ups and shipping labels all need Core or higher.
- The free domain covers the first year of an annual plan only and then renews at Squarespace's standard rate.
Key features
Format
- Themes and Flex Block layouts
- Pick from more than 90 themes and switch without losing content, build custom layouts on a snap grid with Flex Block, and edit CSS and HTML on Pro and Pro Plus.
- Client galleries and file transfers
- Workflow, included free with every plan, adds proofing galleries with passwords, file transfers of 2 to 10 GB, contacts and moodboards; contracts and CRM Light need Pro.
- Commission-free store
- Sell physical products, digital downloads up to 100 MB and services through PayPal or Stripe with no Format commission: 15 products on Pro and 1,000 on Pro Plus.
- Hosted video
- Upload video straight to the site so visitors see no third-party ads: 15 minutes on Pro and 120 minutes on Pro Plus.
- Lightroom plugin and iPhone app
- Publish galleries from Lightroom Classic with the Format Publisher plugin, or upload and rearrange photos from the iPhone app.
- SEO and translation
- Edit page titles, meta descriptions and image alt text, and connect Weglot to translate the site into other languages.
Squarespace
- Templates and drag-and-drop editing
- Sites start from a designer template and are laid out in the Fluid Engine drag-and-drop editor. Every site is adjusted for phones automatically.
- AI site builder and AI credits
- Blueprint builds a starting site from a few answers, and built-in AI writes content. Credits run from 10 one-time on Basic to 120 a month on Advanced.
- Online store on every plan
- Sell unlimited physical products, services, digital goods, gift cards and subscriptions, with abandoned-cart emails on all plans. Basic adds a 2% fee on store sales.
- Invoicing, memberships and paid content
- Branded invoices and pay links are free on every plan. Courses, memberships and paywalled content carry a fee of 7% on Basic, falling to 0% on Advanced.
- Hosting, SSL and unlimited bandwidth
- Managed hosting, free SSL certificates and uncapped bandwidth and storage come with every plan. Video hosting runs from 30 minutes on Basic to unlimited on Advanced.
- Forms, newsletters and SEO tools
- Form and newsletter blocks feed a contacts panel, and SEO guidance and keyword reports come built in. Pop-ups and the announcement bar need Core or higher.
Plans
Format
Basic$10
per month, billed annually ($14 billed monthly)
$120 a year. 10 pages, 70 images, 3 client galleries and 2 GB file transfers; no store, hosted video, image storage or custom fonts.
Pro$17
per month, billed annually ($24 billed monthly)
$204 a year. Unlimited pages, 1,500 images, 100 GB storage, 15 video minutes and 15 store products. Shown at $12 for a first year with a code until Oct 31, 2026.
Pro Plus$26
per month, billed annually ($36 billed monthly)
$312 a year. Unlimited images, 1 TB storage, 120 video minutes, 1,000 products and priority support. Shown at $15 for a first year with a code until Oct 31, 2026.
Squarespace
Basic$19
per site / month, billed annually ($25 billed monthly)
A full website and store with up to 2 contributors, 30 minutes of video, a 2% fee on online sales and 7% on paid memberships.
Core$29
per site / month, billed annually ($39 billed monthly)
Unlimited contributors, no fee on store sales, custom CSS and JavaScript, shipping labels, commerce APIs and 20 AI credits a month.
Plus$49
per site / month, billed annually ($65 billed monthly)
Lower card rates (2.7% + $0.30), a 1% fee on paid memberships, 50 hours of video and 40 AI credits a month.
Advanced$99
per site / month, billed annually ($139 billed monthly)
The lowest card rates (2.5% + $0.30), no fee on memberships, unlimited video and 120 AI credits a month.
Ways to pay less
Format
- Annual discount
Save about 29% with yearly billing
Pro costs $204 a year against $24 a month billed monthly; Basic is $120 a year against $14 a month and Pro Plus $312 against $36.
- Education
A free year for students
Format's Student Program gives students a free year on the platform, requested through its education page; it also offers free access to partner schools.
Squarespace
- Annual discount
Pay yearly to save about 24% to 29%
Basic costs $19 a month billed yearly against $25 billed monthly, and Advanced $99 against $139. Squarespace's page advertises savings of up to 36%.
- Other savings
Free domain for a year with an annual plan
Annual website plans include one year of free registration for one domain on Squarespace's cheapest pricing tier; it then renews at the standard rate.
- Education
Students get 50% off the first year
Students who verify their status through Student Beans get 50% off their first full year on a new annual website plan.
